Press on Environment and Wildlife

Villagers Come Together to Oppose Garbage Units (November Week #2 (2014))

BENGALURU: The BBMP could face more trouble in its efforts to get rid of waste from the city. People affected by waste dumping, as in Mandur, are backing other villagers fighting the civic body’s proposal to open waste processing units in their areas.

Source: http://cmsenvis.cmsindia.org/newsletter/enews/NewsDetails.asp?id=65410

Tughlaqabad lake heavily polluted (Issue of the week, October Week #5 (2014))

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation informed the court that the lake was formed due to accumulation of discharge from a nearby unauthorized colony and said it is about two kilometres long, 300m wide and 10ft deep. The corporation suggested that a water
treatment plant be set up in the area by DJB so that the water can be used for horticulture purposes.

Earlier, HC had pulled up MoEF for failing to collect samples from the waterbody and submit a report on contamination.

HC's orders came on a PIL filed by advocate Manoj Kumar seeking clean water for animals and birds in the city. Kumar alleged that the animals and birds in the capital are being deprived of clean water to drink.

The petition stated that water treatment plants should be set up to save birds, animals, trees and the environment. It cited the example of forested area in Tughlaqabad saying water from the artificial lake was killing monkeys,
peacocks, deer and birds.

Source

http://cmsenvis.cmsindia.org/resources/newspaper/details.asp?id=64611

Five lakh trees to stop cyclone devastation (October Week #5 (2014))

As per CRZ rules, no construction activity, including roads, is allowed along the coastline. A green belt along the coastline must be developed as it acts as a natural barrier against natural calamities like cyclones.

However, this invaluable natural barrier is being eroded at an alarming rate. The forest department has found that about 60 per cent of this green belt has vanished in the district.

Taking this into account, the district forest department has prepared a blueprint to strengthen the coastline.

As many as 15 varieties of trees most of them native to the area, have been identified, and will be planted along the coast.

Source

http://cmsenvis.cmsindia.org/newsletter/enews/NewsDetails.asp?id=64756

Tiny house-fly holds secrets to our better health and environment (October Week #5 (2014))

The house fly (Musca domestica) lives on human and animal waste. They are an important species for scientific study because of their roles as waste decomposers and as carriers of over 100 human diseases, including typhoid, tuberculosis and worms. Fly transmitted
trachoma alone causes 6 million cases of childhood blindness each year. Because the house fly is so intimately involved in human processes, the researchers say sequencing its genome will have implications for human health, identifying the genes that allow
the flies to live in toxic environments.

The lead author of the paper Jeff Scott, Cornell University, says: "House flies are a fascinating insect for scientists in many areas, such as developmental biology, sex determination, immunity, toxicology and physiology. The
completed genome will be a phenomenal tool for researchers in all of these fields and will facilitate rapid advancements"

Source

http://cmsenvis.cmsindia.org/resources/newspaper/details.asp?id=64531

India bans import of cosmetics tested on animals (October Week #5 (2014))

India bans import of cosmetics tested on animals

Nearly five months after banning cosmetic animal testing within the country, India has now also imposed a ban on importing such products that test on animals and thus become the first country in south Asia to do so.

The government on Monday notified a rule to this effect, prohibiting "import of cosmetics tested on animals" from November 13.

This amended Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, imposing dual ban (test and import), has now put India in the league of European Union and Israel that had imposed such ban long ago.

The gazette notification, issued by the ministry of health and family welfare on Monday, said that no cosmetic that has been tested on animals after the commencement of this notification would be imported into the country.

Source

http://cmsenvis.cmsindia.org/resources/newspaper/details.asp?id=64550

Crocodiles team up to hunt their prey (October Week #5 (2014))

Studying predatory behaviour by crocodiles and their relatives such as alligators and caimans in the wild is notoriously difficult because they are ambush hunters, have slow metabolisms and eat much less frequently than warm-blooded animals.

To overcome these difficulties, Dinets used Facebook and other social media sites to solicit eyewitness accounts from amateur naturalists, crocodile researchers and nonscientists working with crocodiles.

He also looked through diaries of scientists and conducted more than 3,000 hours of observations himself.

The observations had something in common - coordination and collaboration among the crocodiles in hunting their prey.

"Despite having been made independently by different people on different continents, these records showed striking similarities. This suggests that the observed phenomena are real, rather than just tall tales or misinterpretation," said Dinets.

Source

http://cmsenvis.cmsindia.org/resources/newspaper/details.asp?id=64558